5 Things We Learned From Week 1
1- The AFC West is the best division in football!
With the 3 of the 4 teams winning in the AFC East, I can expect this division to have a very thrilling season. The biggest upset this week had to be Chiefs beating the defending Super Bowl Champs in the New England Patriots. We saw Kareem Hunt break out by absolutely destroying the Pats not only in the run game but the pass game... Hunt's a very exciting player to watch. Speaking of a running back that showed up, let's talk BEAST MODE... In his first game with Oakland Lynch racked up over 90 yards from scrimmage while shattering everyones expectations for him. A big story line for week 1 was Derek Carr vs Marcus Mariota; Carr absolutely killed it throwing for 262 yards and 2 touchdowns. Carr is picking up from where he left off last season jumping right back into that MVP race. On Monday night, the Broncos and the Chargers faced off against one an other; the Broncos ending up taking the W after the Chargers began to comeback. Each team looked really solid and I wouldn't be surprised if the Chargers finished with the best defense in the division. That D-Line is deadly and I think there will be a lot of breakout players in that unit. On the other side of that game, Trevor Simeion looked really solid and I would expect for CJ Anderson to start picking it up in the next couple of weeks. This division looks really good and it should be an exciting year for the West.
2- The Kizer Show
The last time the Browns had this much potential, I wasn't born yet. Kizer looked really solid in his debut against the Steelers and I expect him to continue his success against the Ravens this week. I really like what Hue Jackson and the Browns are doing in Cleveland and I think they found their franchise quarterback. Kizer has a bright future and has silenced the haters. It's a happy time in Cleveland now-a-days.
3- The Running Backs of the Future
In my opinion, the most impressive performance last Monday wasn't Stefon Diggs, Adam Thielen, Trevor Simeion but it was Dalvin Cook. He showed up big time having the most yards by a Vikings rookie running back ever, in a debut. An other player that impressed me was Leonard Fournette, he had 100 yards and looks like a bell cow back. The Jags look extremely solid and I think they found their future RB. Christian McCaffery wasn't given the load in his debut but showed a ton of potential as he looks to receive more action. As we know Kareem Hunt played his butt off and he looks like he is going to be one of the best backs in the league this year.
4- No Slump coming in Dallas
Against the Giants, Ezekiel Elliott looked like he was the best player on the field; and he probably was. People were fearing that him and Dak were going to hit a sophomore slump, but they came out very strong. If Zeke wasn't suspended he would make all the Fantasy owners with the number one pick, rethink their decision. I think that both are MVP candidates and I expect really big things out of Dallas this year... and I mean really big (Superbowl)
5- Time for Carson Palmer to Step Up
With (in my opinion) the most valuable player in the NFL going on IR, if the Cardinals have a chance to go to the players they need their main signal caller to step up. What I saw in that game against the Lions, I don't know if he can. In order for Carson Palmer to show up, he needs to target Larry Fitzgerald a whole lot more. I think Larry Fitzgerald will have a season to remember and it all starts here.
